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If you are looking for a football fix or just want to chew on hundreds of pages of Cardinals information, well, here is a solution. The hardworking media relations department (Mark Dalton, Chris Melvin, Mike Helm, Matt Storey and Allison LeClair) along with design guru Mike Chavez, have produced the 2014 media guide, which is now posted to the website. You can find it right here with the chance to digest all you want about the Cardinals.

In one week, the Cardinals will be reporting to University of Phoenix Stadium. The season is just about here.

9 Responses
to “Camp is close — the media guide is here”

Would it be considered “drinking the cool-aide” to expect the Cards to finish this season at 11-5? Yes, that would mean going un-defeated at home with teams like SF, Seattle and Philly in the bird’s nest and winning on the Road at Oak, St.Louis and at Dallas. (if they stay healthy all year)

Those are high expectations but they did beat SF last year at home, can match up well with Seattle…should have won last year in St. Louis and we all know Oak will maybe be a average team this year while Dallas will be lucky to win 6 games total this year with that defense.

D
Sorry D but they did not beat SF last year at all! They were a horrid 2 & 4 in division beating only St Louis @ home but they did have the huge win up in Seattle! They lost that last game of the year to SF 20-23 Feely missed 2 Field Goals! A 37 yarder in the 1st quarter & a 43 yarder in the 4th…We lost that early
1st game to the Rams 24-27…& the TE game to Phili 21-24…However we barely beat HST here 27-24 & just got by @ Tennessee in OT 37-34…The only team that
literally owned us was @ the Saints early on in the season 7-31…So we mostly were in all but one game & won 6 of 8 after the bye which has lead to much of the
optimism…(Cards scores listed 1st)

As for the “Kool Aid” its what were all hoping! However, they must do better in division! And yet SF & the Rams will be even better than last year! See they’re
drafts! From every agency I checked & I checked like over a dozen…the Rams
were rated the best of the draft many A+ & A was they’re lowest grade! For SF I mostly saw A’s & A- grades…Cardinals mostly got B+’s however many analysts
stated w/they’re FA additions added of Cromartie & Veldeer…they would give the Cards an A-. A lot will depend in the future how Logan Thomas, Troy Niklas, &
John Brown turn out as other options (players) were passed on for those 2nd,3rd
& 4th Rnd picks! And finally, Seattle only got straight B’s for they’re selections…
which is the lowest since Pete Carroll went there..

So it Aint gonna be easy! They must be at least 500 in division, at least splinting all division opponents! We’ll see?

To the discussion above, and as I have stated elsewhere, I don’t even think .500 in the division will be enough. I am setting that bar at 4-2. And it is worth noting that despite how good the Cards were by the end of last season, they were still 2-4 in the division. And their last win against San Fran was entirely too damn long ago. That has to change.

The Cardinals are truly in a unique – and not very pleasant – position among NFL teams. Because they play in the NFC West, they could finish 11-5 and MAYBE not even make the playoffs. Wow. That could actually happen to either Seattle or San Fran, too, but until we actually see otherwise….those teams HAVE to be considered the favorites in the division. AND the NFC. AND the NFL in general. Face it, the REAL SB last year was the NFC title game. The AFC had NO ONE who was gonna compete with Seattle OR San Fran.

The Cardinals could be 11-5 and be a division winner anywhere else in the NFL. In the NFC West? They could be 11-5 and finish 3rd in the division and not make the playoffs. Hence, the need for them to win the games within the division. They can’t get licked around in the division again and count on having enough wins against everyone else to get them in.

I truly believe that the Cards could have closed the deal on the 9ers in the final game however, there was really nothing to play for once we learned that even with a win we were done when the Saints sealed the deal (pretty much a foregone conclusion). It seems as I recall BA pulling our starters, some of who still had the Probowl to be healthy for. Where we missed the boat was in the first half of the season when our players were still learning BA’s scheme and weren’t really ready and we were without Washington. This year we need to get out front and get off to a strong start, win our home games and finish strong. We have a much tougher schedule that most fans realize and we will be without that killer defense from last season. I fear that no having Tyrann Mathieu until October could be what keeps us out of the playoffs again this year. Our offense is improved but was good at the end of the season and I think Palmer will have his best year ever if he can stay healthy; it’s our defense, despite our amazing secondary and strong line that has me worried. The Rams have upgraded and it will be even more of a dogfight this year. Apparently there are many with rose colored glasses or drinking the cool-aid but in this division it will be defense that win championships! Apparently, I’m not the only one from the comments above who share my view!

With a much improved O-line – which is a realistic expectation with all of our horses healthy and on the field – I honestly believe this team will be able to win games with offense if / when they have to. This offense is built for big plays down the field and definitely has quick strike capability. Now, that may come in handy IF our D is not quite where it was last year, especially early on with the Honey Badger not back yet. This offense should be able to score with anybody. BUT, if the D IS right where it was last year and shootouts are not necessary, then I go back to the O-line again. Because with a much improved O-line, we should be able to play balanced and think in terms of ball control. And I cite the game in Seattle last year where that worked like a friggin charm. Our D was giving Seattle fits, they couldn’t score, and that allowed the Cardinals to stay balanced on offense. We had a big advantage in time of possession and that was HUGE. As good as Seattle is on D, I believed they way they were gonna win that game ( and I said so days in advance ) was by keeping that defense on the field as much as possible. Because THAT would mean the ball was staying in our hands AND our D was staying fresh on the sidelines. They did that to perfection that day and they won in a place where no one has been able to win for the last 2 years.

I say that with a much improved O-line, this offense can do whatever it needs to to win games. Against anybody. Anywhere. That means you, Seattle. 12th man, my rear end…..